School Shooting

A gunman is dead. Two people are hospitalized after Thursday's shooting at an elementary school in Bend, Oregon.

At 12:59 p.m., the first 911 call came in, reporting gunfire into a car near Silver Rail Elementary School, according to the Guardian and Fox News. Officers arrived two minutes later. Almost immediately, they caught word over police radio that the gunman had been shot, Bend police spokesperson Sheila Miller said.

"We don't have confirmation yet who shot the suspect. It may have been a bystander. At this time, we have multiple victims," Miller told reporters at a news conference, according to France 24 and DW. Bend Fire medics rushed at least two people to St. Charles hospital, Fox News reported. Children were among the injured, police said, according to the Guardian, though their conditions were not immediately known.

Silver Rail serves roughly 450 students in kindergarten through fifth grade and employs more than 40 staff members, DW and Fox News reported. Bend itself is a city of about 100,000 people in central Oregon. France 24 put the distance from Portland at more than 100 miles. Just 175, by DW's count.

Officers swept the building room by room to evacuate students, Fox News reported. Buses carried the children to Journey Church, where officials told families to gather for reunification, France 24 and Fox News reported. Gov. Tina Kotek said she was monitoring the situation, the Guardian reported.

The FBI's Portland field office sent agents to help local investigators work the scene, and Director Kash Patel confirmed the bureau was assisting, the Guardian reported. "We will make every resource they need available," the office said in a statement, Fox News reported.

Sen. Jeff Merkley said his team was tracking the reports closely. "No one should have to fear violence at school," he wrote, according to Fox News. Rep. Janelle Bynum, whose district includes Bend, called the shooting every parent's worst fear.

More than 360 mass shootings have happened in the U.S. this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive, cited by France 24. The FBI's investigation continues.

"Our babies are supposed to do arts and crafts at school, not use their desks as cover from gunfire," Bynum said in a statement, according to Fox News.